Cycle of Poverty-Screening discussion guide

Activity Guide: Cycle of poverty

Students brainstorm and create a list of educational resources, tools, services, and facilities that a school needs in order to function well. Students consider how their own education would be affected if these critical educational components and resources were no longer available to them at school. The “Cycle of Poverty” student guide worksheet can be completed by students as they view “Building Hope.” This exercise is designed to increase your students’ awareness of the Cycle of Poverty, and helps students to understand what resources are needed to break that cycle.

(18) Citizenship. The student understands the importance of individual participation in the democratic process at the local, state, and national levels. The student is expected to:

(A) explain the duty individuals have to participate in civic affairs at the local, state, and national levels; and

(B) explain how to contact elected and appointed leaders in local, state, and national governments.

(19) Citizenship. The student understands the importance of effective leadership in a constitutional republic.

(22) Culture. The student understands the contributions of people of various racial, ethnic, and religious groups to the United States. The student is expected to:

(C) summarize the contributions of people of various racial, ethnic, and religious groups to our national identity

(26) Social studies skills. The student uses problem-solving and decision-making skills, working independently and with others, in a variety of settings. The student is expected to:

(A) use a problem-solving process to identify a problem, gather information, list and consider options, consider advantages and disadvantages, choose and implement a solution, and evaluate the effectiveness of the solution; and

(B) use a decision-making process to identify a situation that requires a decision, gather information, identify options, predict consequences, and take action to implement a decision.

Materials Needed:

World map or globe

Building Hope DVD or film module

Pre-screening activity:

Ask students to brainstorm a list of all the things a school needs to have in order to function well. How would their own education be affected if any of these things were taken away?

Locate Kenya on a map. Ask students what they already know about Kenya and what they expect to see in the video based on that.

During Screening:

Students complete the “Cycle of Poverty” student guide.

Post Screening

Students follow up with a discussion of the cycle of poverty and development.

Alternately, the discussion of development factors and the cycle of poverty can take place before viewing the video. As they watch, students can identify ways those factors are being developed through the efforts of the project.

The Cycle of Poverty Worksheet

Name ______________________________

1. The technology used to bring clean water to Mahiga’s elementary school also brought
_____________________ and _____________________.

2. It was decided that a ____________________________ also needed to be built in
Mahiga.

3. What is the goal of Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathari’s Green Belt Movement?

4. The Mahiga Elementary School motto is ”__________________________________”.

5. The basketball court was designed with the secondary purpose of
_____________________________________________________.

6. How did the people of Mahiga contribute to the building of the high school?

7. Nobelity’s “1000 Voices for Hope” fundraising efforts in April of 2010 focused on
raising money for _____________________________________________.

8. When the Pipkins returned to Kenya in February of 2010, they brought
__________________________________ with them.

9. Parents at Mahiga discovered that ________________________________ was the
single biggest advantage they could give to their kids.

10. The students took a trip to _____________________________________.